Doctors Can’t Find the Source of Bleeding in Bret Michaels’s Brain

By Katherine Hobson

Doctors are still looking for the source of the bleeding in Bret Michaels’s brain, reports the Los Angeles Times. The lead singer of Poison and reality TV star has been in intensive care since a massive headache sent him to the hospital on Friday.

How common is that kind of prolonged search?

Not very, says Michael Lawton, a vascular neurosurgeon at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center who isn’t involved with Michaels’s case. In the case of a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or bleeding between the brain and the tissues that cover it, the source is usually pretty clear. (People.com and other news organizations have reported that’s the type of hemorrhage Michaels is suffering from.)

“Nine times out of ten, those are caused by an aneurysm” –a weak spot in an artery — that bulges, stretches, and then bursts, Lawton tells the Health Blog. In about 10% of cases the source of the bleeding isn’t immediately apparent, he says. That might be because it’s a small aneurysm that’s hidden by some clotting, or it’s a normal blood vessel that bursts.

In that case, imaging tests are usually repeated within several days in the hope of “getting a better view the second time,” says Lawton. If there’s an identifiable aneurysm, it can be treated via surgical clipping, or in some cases, by packing it full of coils that prevent blood from filling it.

The prognosis for a subarachnoid hemorrhage depends on the severity of the initial bleeding, says Lawton. Milder cases can be cured. According to eMedicine, 10% to 15% of sufferers die before reaching the hospital, 40% die within the first week, and about 50% within the first six months. There can also be lingering neurological effects for survivors.